That wasn't Dippin Dots in San Antonio this morning

Here's a look back at some of the sights from our February wintry weather-

Cars pass an iced over bridge on U.S. Highway 281 North near Donella as icy road conditions persist Thursday February 6, 2014.

Photo By JOHN DAVENPORT/SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS

Northbound U.S. Highway 281 Northbound is closed near Brookhollow due to icy road conditions. Numerous accidents in the north central area are causing traffic problems.

Photo By JOHN DAVENPORT/SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS

Deer huddle together in a front yard Thursday February 6, 2014 on a frosty morning in Hollywood Park.

Photo By Courtesy

Evers Road & 410

Photo By Courtesy

Evers Road & 410

Photo By Courtesy

Evers Road & 410

Photo By Photo by Gregory Anglin

Photo By Courtesy

Near Brook Hollow and 281

Photo By Courtesy

Near Brook Hollow and 281

Photo By Courtesy

Near Brook Hollow and 281

Photo By Courtesy Photo/Sara Milam

This photo taken in Encino Creek, near Bulverde and Evans roads, shows a graupel snowman in San Antonio on Thursday, Feb. 6, 2014.

Photo By Courtesy

Snowmen at UTSA 1604

Photo By Tracy Hobson Lehmann

Photo By Luis A. Alvarez

An authentic South Texas snow angel

Photo By JOHN DAVENPORT/SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS

A wrecker driver uprights a pickup truck that rolled over on a bridge Thursday February 6, 2014 near Sonterra and U.S. Highway 281 North after ice and frozen precipitation blanketed the San Antonio area in the early morning hours. The driver of the truck was not seriously injured, but traffic in the area was backed up for hours.

Photo By JOHN DAVENPORT/SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS

Small balls of ice are on the ground in north central San Antonio as winter precipitation takes place in the area Thursday February 6, 2014.

Photo By By Burt Henry

Photo By LeAnna Kosub

Paula McCain, a fourth-grade teacher at Buckner Fanning Christian School sweeps the snow/ice pellets from a walkway so her students can get to class.

Photo By LeAnna Kosub

Students at Buckner Fanning Christian School take a break after their rodeo breakfast to make a mini snowman.

Photo By Courtesy Photo/Susan Douglass

Graupel in San Antonio on Thursday, Feb. 6, 2014.

Photo By Courtesy Photo/Sarah Hambrick

Graupel at Newcombe Tennis Ranch in New Braunfels on Thursday, Feb. 6, 2014.

Photo By Courtesy Photo/Sara Milam

This photo taken in Encino Creek, near Bulverde and Evans roads, shows graupel in San Antonio on Thursday, Feb. 6, 2014.

Photo By Courtesy Photo/Sara Milam

This photo taken in Encino Creek, near Bulverde and Evans roads, shows graupel in San Antonio on Thursday, Feb. 6, 2014.

Photo By Courtesy Photo/Sara Milam

This photo taken in Encino Creek, near Bulverde and Evans roads, shows graupel in San Antonio on Thursday, Feb. 6, 2014.

Photo By Courtesy Photo/Sara Milam

This photo taken in Encino Creek, near Bulverde and Evans roads, shows graupel in San Antonio on Thursday, Feb. 6, 2014.

Photo By Courtesy Photo/Sara Milam

This photo taken in Encino Creek, near Bulverde and Evans roads, shows graupel in San Antonio on Thursday, Feb. 6, 2014.

Photo By Courtesy Photo/Sara Milam

This photo taken in Encino Creek, near Bulverde and Evans roads, shows graupel in San Antonio on Thursday, Feb. 6, 2014.

Photo By Dorothy Blackshear/Courtesy Photo

This photo of graupel in San Antonio was taken near U.S. 281 and Loop 1604 on Thursday, Feb. 6, 2014.

Photo By Courtesy Photo/Susan Buentello

Graupel in San Antonio on Thursday, Feb. 6, 2014.

Photo By Joel M. Rodriguez

Photo By Courtesy

At UTSA 1604

Photo By Ashley Johnson

Photo By Ashley Johnson

Caroline made a snowman

Photo By Courtesy

Snow pellets in the Medical Center area

Photo By Noah Guerra

Stone Oak Meadows subdivision

Photo By Gerry Uecker

North of the airport off of Brook Hollow

Photo By Noah Guerra

Stone Oak Meadows subdivision

Photo By Gerry Uecker

North of the airport off of Brook Hollow

Photo By Bill Rony, courtesy

On Wed morning 2-7-14 at 8:15am A turned over vehicle on southbound of I-35 in New Braunfels by Exit 182

Photo By By Burt Henry

A South Texas blizzard? Just a dusting of freezing rain or sleet, which roared through Bexar County early Thursday.

Sleet-covered deck in Encino Park.

Photo By By Liz Paxton

From my back porch

Photo By Tracy Lehmann

Dusting of snow pellets in New Braunfels.

Photo By Tracy Hobson Lehmann

Snow on a chancla.

Photo By JOHN DAVENPORT/SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS

Pellets of ice coat the ground Thursday February 6, 2014 in north central San Antonio after winter weather moved through the area. This took place about 4:15 a.m. .

Photo By Tricia Schwennesen

Light snow falling in the Northeast Side

Photo By Tricia Schwennesen

Photo By Michael Knoop/ San Antonio Express-News

A light dusting of what appears to be graupel, granular snow pellets also called "soft hail," is seen at the Silver Oaks community park on the far west side.

Photo By Tricia Schwennesen

Photo By By Tricia Schwennesen

Photo By Burt Henry

Dusting of sleet and freezing rain swept through Bexar County overnight.

Photo By By Cindy Ramos

Northwest San Antonio

Northwest San Antonio

Photo By Cindy Ramos

Snow in bowl

A light dusting of what appears to be graupel, granular snow pellets also called "soft hail," is seen at the Silver Oaks community park on the far west side.

Photo By Cindy Ramos

Snow on recycle bin

Photo By Michael Knoop/ San Antonio Express-News

A light dusting of what appears to be graupel, granular snow pellets also called "soft hail," is seen at the Silver Oaks community park on the far west side.

Photo By Michael Knoop/ San Antonio Express-News

A light dusting of what appears to be graupel, granular snow pellets also called "soft hail," is seen at the Silver Oaks community park on the far west side.

Photo By Michael Knoop/ San Antonio Express-News

A light dusting of what appears to be graupel, granular snow pellets also called "soft hail," is seen at the Silver Oaks community park on the far west side.

Photo By Michael Knoop/ San Antonio Express-News

A light dusting of what appears to be graupel, granular snow pellets also called "soft hail," is seen at the Silver Oaks community park on the far west side.

Photo By Gerry Uecker

North of the airport off of Brook Hollow

Photo By Courtesy

Near Brook Hollow and 281

Photo By Benjamin Lee, courtesy

A reader uses Google Glass to take photos of graupel, which is snow encased in ice, on Thursday morning, Feb. 6, 2014.

Photo By Benjamin Lee, courtesy

A reader uses Google Glass to take photos of graupel, which is snow encased in ice, on Thursday morning, Feb. 6, 2014.

Photo By Benjamin Lee, courtesy

A reader uses Google Glass to take photos of graupel, which is snow encased in ice, on Thursday morning, Feb. 6, 2014.

Photo By Benjamin Lee, courtesy

A reader uses Google Glass to take photos of graupel, which is snow encased in ice, on Thursday morning, Feb. 6, 2014.

Photo By Benjamin Lee, courtesy

A reader uses Google Glass to take photos of graupel, which is snow encased in ice, on Thursday morning, Feb. 6, 2014.

Photo By Benjamin Lee, courtesy

A reader uses Google Glass to take photos of graupel, which is snow encased in ice, on Thursday morning, Feb. 6, 2014.

Photo By Benjamin Lee, courtesy

A reader uses Google Glass to take photos of graupel, which is snow encased in ice, on Thursday morning, Feb. 6, 2014.

Photo By Benjamin Lee, courtesy

A reader uses Google Glass to take photos of graupel, which is snow encased in ice, on Thursday morning, Feb. 6, 2014.

Photo By Benjamin Lee, courtesy

A reader uses Google Glass to take photos of graupel, which is snow encased in ice, on Thursday morning, Feb. 6, 2014.

Photo By Benjamin Lee, courtesy

A reader uses Google Glass to take photos of graupel, which is snow encased in ice, on Thursday morning, Feb. 6, 2014.

Photo By Benjamin Lee, courtesy

A reader uses Google Glass to take photos of graupel, which is snow encased in ice, on Thursday morning, Feb. 6, 2014.

Photo By Benjamin Lee, courtesy

A reader uses Google Glass to take photos of graupel, which is snow encased in ice, on Thursday morning, Feb. 6, 2014.

Photo By Benjamin Lee, courtesy

A reader uses Google Glass to take photos of graupel, which is snow encased in ice, on Thursday morning, Feb. 6, 2014.

SAN ANTONIO — People throughout a wide swath of the region awoke Thursday morning to find what looked like Dippin Dots or foam packaging material on their cars and the ground.

The pellets are called “graupel,” said Cory Van Pelt, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. They are snow flakes that become encased in ice as they fall through a cold, moist middle layer of the atmosphere, Van Pelt said.

“As the snow fell from high above, there was a layer about halfway down that would cause the droplets to form on there,” Van Pelt said. “It was pretty uniform all across a big chunk of the area.”

The graupel fell between about 3 a.m. and 6 a.m. in the area. Some areas reported sleet with thunder and lightning between 3:30 and 4:30 a.m., Van Pelt said.

“Thundersnow” happens occasionally in the colder northern parts of the country, but Van Pelt joked that few people had ever heard of “thunder-graupel.”

The graupel, rare for South Central Texas, took meteorologists by surprise, Van Pelt said. They had been predicting freezing drizzle for Thursday morning.

Sometimes called “snow pellets,” graupel falls more often in the Plains region, Van Pelt said.

So far, the weather service's office serving San Antonio and Austin is still predicting freezing drizzle for Friday morning, but there could be some graupel mixed in, Van Pelt said. Models are showing heavier precipitation Friday morning than Thursday morning.

Did you see graupel this morning? Send your photos to news@mysanantonio.com